Norsk Titanium US among 25 suppliers selected for America Makes' $10.5M JAQS-SQ metal AM qualification program

Norsk Titanium US is among 25 project teams selected for America Makes' $10.5 million Joint Additive Qualification for Sustainment – Supplier Qualification (JAQS-SQ) Groups 2 and 3 program. The award places the firm in a cohort spanning machine developers, production service bureaus, aerospace OEMs, materials suppliers, and LPBF or DED specialists. Funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of War Manufacturing Technology Office and run with NCDMM, the effort builds common training and audit requirements so metal AM suppliers can repeatedly produce qualified parts. America Makes says the expanded JAQS network now totals 31 suppliers.

For Norsk Titanium, the selection is a defense supply-chain credentialing step rather than a product launch. JAQS-SQ targets the real choke point in defense metal AM: inconsistent supplier onboarding for LPBF and DED, not machine availability. Wichita State University's NIAR will help write the curriculum for production and engineering managers covering process-control documents and qualification principles; each participant must then integrate the guidance and pass an audit that includes a performance qualification for Department of War use. That pathway matters because defense metal AM adoption still hinges on repeatable process control and auditable supplier status more than on isolated machine demos.

Suppliers that complete training and clear audit enter a more formalized defense AM eligible set; those outside it face a higher cost to prove readiness on a case-by-case basis.